Villas at Summer Bay

[cwnhokie]

Anyone ever stayed here? Anything you could tell me would be helpful. Thanks

 

[cwnhokie]

Sorry, I did a search and found lots of info. New question: We have 12 in our group. Would you rather rent a 5 bedroom house with a pool or rent 2 villas at Summer Bay. I can get them for $265 for the week, each.

 

[mbb]

the price for the SBV can't be beat - at least by any *nice* 5 bedroom houses I looked at last year

The cheapest we found - with pool heat included - worked out to about $900 or more per week...and there weren't many of those villas available. Most would be in the $1000/week range, and up.

(My mother was very clear that I wasn't to pick any rentals that looked "lumpy" - I think that's a few steps up from dumpy LOL!)

Soooo, if budget isn't your main concern, that begs the questions:
Do you want a private pool/spa?
Do you want to be able to choose your bedding arrangements, ie, king beds, queens, doubles, singles?
Do you want a private gamesroom space?
How much time will you be spending together in the house?
How will you arrange cooking/tidying up duties?
How "happy" will all of you be living together?
Will it be a vacation for all of you? Or just some of you?

We had a beautiful 5 bedroom in VistaPark Resort. The owner was great, too

But I think the key to our success was ALL OF US talking about "what happens when"...before our trip. We still had a few episodes of upset - and those were the long park, kids didn't rest well, and no one wanted to cook supper, days.

We ordered pizza. Everyone was happy

HTH! and good luck with your decision!

 

[crjack]

cwnhokie, I have stayed at both the Villas of Summer Bay and a rental home and honestly I can't imagine a party of 12 in only 2 villas. Technically, you'll fit because there are 2 bedrooms and a sleep sofa in the living room but for me, personally, I would feel very cramped.

The villas are nice and our family of 4 fit fine but they are smaller than the condos and not nearly as big as the vacation homes we have stayed at.

We liked Summer Bay but as we drove past our turn-off to Windsor Palms, where we stayed previously, we commented that the convenience was much better when we stayed at WP. We also loved having a private pool.

Our kids really enjoyed Summer Bay and we got a great deal through Skyauction so we wouldn't complain about the drive as a trade-off but if you can some how get a vacation home for that price in the same vicinity I would take it for a party that large. You'll definitely have more room to spread out and more privacy.

If you need any info on SB or Windsor Palms just post or send me a pm.

Enjoy

 

[cwnhokie]

I found a vacation home in Windsor Hills on VRBO for $1000 including tax, pool heat and cleaning. I was a little skeptical because it seems to be too good of a deal. Then I got even more worried when my last email to the owner was returned undeliverable. So that's when I started looking else where. This morning I got an email back from the owner so I guess all will be fine there.

Summer Bay looks fun, seems like it might be similar to the Liki Tiki, where we stayed last year on our first trip to Disney. I was concerned about the space though. Our party is 6 adults and 6 kids. I think there may be too many trade offs and not enough savings to do Summer Bay this trip. We'd have to go in May instead of March, cram into a smaller space, give up the pool and game room, etc. Maybe I can talk DH into upgrading our tickets to season passes so that we can go back and try summer bay another time!

 

[crjack]

We're also looking into renting a home in Windsor Hills! A few weeks ago I posted a thread asking for reviews because I was helping my sil/bil plan a family trip and they wanted to try a rental home. We just found out about a family wedding next year in Orlando so now I am doing the same planning but for several houses and we get to go!!!

I was a little surprised to see some of the great rates at WH too....some were even cheaper than houses at Windsor Palms that were a little smaller or lacking game rooms but I think since Windsor Hills is newer, and many owners are working to build up referrals and repeat vacationers, there are some specials available.

I also got better prices using windsorhills-rent than vrbo. Some owners offered specials in a direct email quote that didn't appear through vrbo.

We loved Windsor Palms but there are a few extra ammenities at Windsor Hills that appeal to us so I think we are going to choose a house in that development.

We enjoyed Summer Bay and they have several pools there as well as a game room but like any hotel or resort you have to leave your unit and walk down to them. In a pool home it's so nice, especially with kids, to have it right there at your doorstep. I also think you'll enjoy the extra space of a home and a closer commute with young children. Summer Bay villas would be a great spot for your family of four if you can get it at a later time through Skyauction.

Enjoy your planning!